Why won't a volvo's doors unlock or engine start?

So my boyfriend has a Volvo. It's a wagon..not sure of the year, definitely 1996-1999. Anyway, it has automatic locks with one of those clickers. Today, out of absolutely nowhere, none of the doors will unlock with the clicker. When he manually unlocks...

the door and gets in, the car won't start. Any idea what could be wrong?

I owned an old Volvo (a '81 DL Wagon that I drove until it blew a head gasket in '97).

I found the electrical system to be a bit problematic. I was often fixing small problems like gauges, interior lights, etc that stopped working. Dealers are good about finding and fixing the problems but minor electrical problems kept popping up.

Check your fuses and the battery in your remote but if the problem is not something like this a dealer or good Volvo mechanic can probably fix the problem quickly and inexpensively.

THe battery could be dead. When he tries to start, does the lights come on?

Nope, it doesn't do anything

I was thinking the battery too. But filletofspam has good advice, too. If we had the money to take it to a dealer, we would! We'll start saving now haha

Try to find a Volvo mechanic who is not a dealer. They can usually get you a better price and generally not try to rip you off so much.

My car which is pretty rare cost me a lot to fix recently, but it was still 50% less than what a dealer would charge to do the same work.

fuse??